Nintendo DSi – Date and Price Announced for AU

Nintendo Australia today announced that the Nintendo DSi will be available in Australia and New Zealand on the 2nd of April. It will retail for AU SRP $299.95 and NZ SRP $375.00 respectively.

The system expands upon the DS Lite design, adding in significant new functionality. The system has larger screens, it has 256MB of built-in storage, as well as an SD card slot, it has improved speakers, it has two built-in cameras - one inside and one outside - and it's now slightly slimmer.

By comparison, the DSi will retail for US $169.99 when it launches in the US on the 5th of April, which is only US $40 more than the current price of the DS Lite. The leap in price is more significant in Australia, with the DSi retailing for a full AU $100 more than the Lite (or roughly US $64).

A little info on the system from Nintendo:

Some features that will be built into the system and ready to enjoy upon purchase include the Nintendo DSi Camera, Nintendo DSi Sound and Nintendo DSi Shop. The most noticeable feature of the slim Nintendo DSi system is its two cameras – one camera is on the external body, and the second one points at the user when the device is flipped open. As the first truly interactive digital camera in a video game system with 10 different interactive "lenses" that can manipulate your photos, the Nintendo DSi Camera offers an easy way to take and share your photos with family and friends. The cameras also present people with unprecedented ways to interact with their games while giving developers a new tool to devise creative games and experiences. If the touch screen gave Nintendo DS a sense of feel and the microphone allowed it to hear, the two cameras give Nintendo DSi the sense of sight.

Another enhanced feature is the Nintendo DSi Sound application, which serves as both an interactive voice recorder and music player that allows users to play with their music while they listen to it. Users can access different audio filters or control the pitch and speed of recorded voice or music files to alter voices or change the tempo of a song. The mic is located between the two screens when the device is flipped open, and there is also a stereo headphone output that lets users listen to music saved on an SD card, even with the screen shut.

In the world of software, Nintendo DSi will be the platform for the most relevant and fun on-the-go games and applications. The Nintendo DSiWare application will populate Nintendo DSi with software that can be downloaded using Nintendo DSi Points directly to the portable system, just as WiiWare has with Nintendo's Wii console. Developers big and small are invited to create software that makes use of the properties and functions of the hardware. Nintendo DSiWare games and applications will be available at a range of values, starting at 200 points.

You can check out our US team's hands-on (published today!) with the DSi here.